Illinois deputy fatally shot outside holiday party

BELLWOOD, Ill. (AP) — A sheriff's deputy has been shot to death while trying to break up an armed robbery outside a family Christmas party in suburban Chicago.

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart tells the Chicago Sun-Times (http://bit.ly/1bhGq4o ) the shooting happened Friday night at the VFW hall in Bellwood, about 13 miles from downtown Chicago.

Dart says the deputy is a former Marine who'd been with the department for more than 20 years. He released few details about the shooting except that the offender shot the officer when he tried to intervene in the robbery outside the hall.

The Sun-Times reports the officer's body arrived at the Cook County medical examiner's office around midnight.

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Sheriff's officials didn't immediately respond early Saturday to phone and email messages from The Associated Press.